Process of making oil gas



July 15, 1930.

K. N. WANNEBO PROCESS OF MAKING DID GAS Filed March 26. 1926 Patented July 15, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PROCESS OF MAKING OIL GAS Application filed March 26,1926, Serial No.

The object of this invention is to produce gas from oil or tarin a generator, obtaining aromatic or gasoline-like products as a byproduct.

One form of generator for carrying out this process is shown in the accompanying drawing which is a vertical sectional View of the oil gas generator. The generator consists of two identical, vertical and'cylindrical steel shells, A and B connected at the top by the conduit 1. The shells A and B are closed at both ends with steel end plates. If the gas making is to be conducted at a relatively high pressure, the end plates should preferably be of a spherical form. The generators are lined with-firebrick or other refractory material. .The shells A and B are divided into compartments by two or more arches in each shell. The arches are of firebrick or other refractory material. The arches areperforated. Above the arches are checkerworks of firebrick or other refractory material to act as reservoirs of heat.

At the tops of A and B are located one or more atomizers 5 and 5 for injecting preheated oil or tar used in this process. At 2 and 2' are inlets for air andfuel, which may be liquid or gaseous, for heating up the generator before starting the process. At the bottom of Aand B are located inlets 3 and 3' for the introduction of the air required for combustion during the oil gas making process. The outlets 4 and 4. are connected to the stack which is not shown on the drawing. G'ras ofi'takes 7 and 7 are connected by valves 8 and 8' and a common conduit 10 to the tar pot 11 and heat exchanger 9. The'heat ex- I changer acts to preheat the oil or tar that is to be treated. The oil gas enters the heat exchanger through inlet 12 and passes out through valve 13 to coolers, scrubbers and other devices (not shown) known in the-,art of gas production for removing condensable vapors and purifying the gas prior to its distribution. 14 is a valve connecting with the stack (not shown). The oil to be treated enters the heat exchanger through inlet 15 and leaves through outlet '16. 17. 18 and 19 are outlets from thetar pot and heat exchanger for tar and oil that has condensed out of the 97,743, and in Germany September 11, 1923.

gas. Inlets 6 and 6 are for the admission of steam for expelling unconsumed air from thispart of the apparatus prior to changing the operation cycle.

The operation of the process will be best understood by referring to the above description and to the drawing. The generator if cold, is first heated by introduction of air and fuel via 2. The products of combustion rise a in A, pass through pipe 1, then pass through B and out via 4 to the stack. The arches, checkerwork and lining are heated. During the operation, the inlets 3 and 3', for admission of air, inlets 6 and 6 for admission of steam and connection 1 to the stack are all closed. After the heating has been carried out for some time in this direction, it is stopped; The direction of the heating gases are reversed by introducing air and fuel via 2. The hot gases then pass in an opposite direction and out through 4. The heating of the generator is thus carried out alternately via 2 and 2 until the desired temperature has been obtained. This temperature may be recorded by pyrometers located in the generator. Instead of passing the combustion gases via land 4' to the stack, they may be led via valves 8 and 8' through the heat exchanger 9 and thence through a valve 14 to the stack. When the heating is completed, air andfuel inlets may be removed from 2 and 2 and the ports filled with fireproof material. The openings in the shells A and B may be covered with suitable dummy flanges. This operation is to prevent the coking up of the heating apparatus which is no longer required and to prevent any leakage at this point.

The generator is now ready for the oil gas. making process. Oil or tar is injected via 5 and 5' with gas ofl'takes 7 and 7 open and all'othervalves closed. The oil or tar will be gasified by the heat in the generator. The products will pass down through A and B and out through the gas ofltakes to the tar pot and heat exchanger. In passing through the generator the gases deposit free carbon formed in the gasification process. The major .portionof this carbon is deposited in the upper hotter portion of the generator.

After the generator has thus reached a normal working condition with carbon and lam black deposited on this hotter partof t e generator, the valve in the gas otttake from A, i. e., valve 8, is closed and air for combustion isadmitted through the air inlet 3. The air rises through the arches and checkerworks in A and is heated by the same. The preheated air on reaching the glowing carbon which has been deposited in burns it mainly to carbon monoxide, developing the heat necessary for the heating and gasification of the tar or oil and also suflicient heat to make up heat losses-from the generator.

The mixture of products of combustion oil gas, and oil and .tar vapors, pass down through B and pass out through 7 tar pot 11, and heat exchanger 9. On the way through B the vapors and gases deposit tree carbon and heat the lower or cooler part of B and are themselves cooled. After the gas makin has been carried out thus for some time, the air inlet 3 is closed steam is then introduced for a short time through 6 in order to expel unconsumed air in A. The steam is superheated in its passage through A. When it comes in contact with the glowing carbon in A and 13, water gas is produced it all carbon in A has not been earlier consumed. This water gas passes out of the generator and through the outlet 7 together with the other gases. The steam inlet 6 is then closed, the valve 8 is opened and the valve 8 closed. The air inlet 3 is then opened. The gas making is carried on but in the opposite direction.

In this manner gasification proceeds in alternate directions, practically continuously, with but small variations in the quality of the va ors and gases produced.

il or tar is introduced the whole time, but the amount of oil or tar introduced through the different atomizers is altered according to the cycle of the process. At the end of each period, when most of the carbon deposited on the checkerwork in the shell, into which airis introduced, has been consumed and the combustion zone approaches.

the upper part of the shell, it is necessary to interrupt for a short time the introduction of oil or tar through the atomizers located at the top of same shell, to prevent accumulation of carbon in the upper part of the generator.

The avera etemperature of the generator is regulated y varying the relative proportions of the oil or tar and the air for combustion which is introduced and. partly by varying the quantity of steam used. As the quantity of air introduced is increased the temperature rises. The temperature falls as the quantity of air is diminished. 1 As the temperature is increased,.th e amount of de-.

posited carbon "increases and the quantity of y-products inthe gases decreases. The character of the by-products is also altered.

hydrocarbons in the condensate decreases.

These are mainly of the aromatic series. At still higher temperatures these are decomposed, thetar decreases in quantity and is of higher specific gravity.

Time is also a very'important'tactor. At a given temperature the decomposition of the hydrocarbons is carried further during slow 'gasification than during faster gasification at the same temperature. If in the same generator, at the same temperature, the same amount of the same oil per unit of time is treated, first at a low pressure and then at a higher pressure, in the second instance the decomposition will be carried further. This because the products, being more compressed,

will take a longer time in passing through the generator. Pressure has an additional effect on the process of decomposition. At higher pressures, all other factors being the same, the .condensable hydrocarbons produced will contain a relatively higher percentage of saturated hydrocarbons than if the process had been carried out at a lower pressure.

If the'gas making is carried out at so low a temperature that the amount of carbon deposited is less than is required to generate the heat necessarv for the process, a part of the injected oil or the gas derived from the oil is burned. If more carbon is deposited than is necessary to develop the heat necessary for carrying out the process and thus tends to accumulate in the generator, the amount of air is increased and a corresponding amount of steam injected. The excess carbon is burned producing producer gas with out increasing the temperature. If it thus is not desired to dilute the gas made in the process with producer gas, the process must be-interrupted from time to time and the carbon removed by blowing air and steam through the generator.

This method of manufacturing gas from oil or tar, renders it possible to produce a cheap gas from cheap oil, fuel oils, tars and such like, with a minimum fuel consumption.

According to this method, not only the" oil At the same time it 15 possible to so control the process, as to allow lar e quantities of" valuable lay-products to be 9 tained. On account of the fact that the oil gas is diluted with the products of combustion it is, it is true, more difficult to remove the condensabl'e hydrocarbons from the gas, but as the process is continuous, although the direction reverses, it is possible to carry on the gasmaking and consequent cooling and scrubbing of the gas at a higher pressure, and remove the condensable hydrocarbons in the manner employed in the 'art of manufacturing gasoline from natural gas.

The generator for producing gas according to this method, can of course be constructed in different ways, and the invention is not confined to the form shown but modifications may be made within the scope of the claims.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my invention, I declare that what I claim is:

1. A process of making oil gas in a twoshell checkcrbrick oil gas generator; which comprises heating the checkerbrick in the shells, introducing oil continuously at an intermediate point between the heated cheokerbrick in the two shells, simultaneously introducing air below the checkerbrick in one of the shells and passing the generated oil'gas from the lower portion of the other shell,

then shutting off the air from the first-mentioned shell and simultaneously admitting air below the checkerbrick of the second-mentioned shell whereby the generated oil gas passes from the lower portion of the firstmentioned shell, and periodically reversing the course of the air and generated oil-gas.

2. A process of making oil-gas in an oilas generating apparatus containing heated eheckerbrick, which process consists in introducing oil continuousl at an intermediate point, simultaneously introducing air at one end of the generatorand passing the generated oil-gas from the other end of the generator, then shutting ofi' the air from the first-mentioned end' of the generator and simultaneously admitting air at the other end of the generator and passing the generated oil-gas from the first-mentioned end of the generator, and periodically reversing the course of the air and generated oil-gas.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto signed my name.

,KRISTIAN NICOLAUS WANNEBO. 

